The US dollar index fluctuated around 98.4 on Friday (December 19) and is expected to close the week relatively unchanged. Investors are still weighing the chances of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut next year, as inflation continues to decline and signs of weakness in the US labor market emerge. The latest inflation data indicates price pressures are easing. The November CPI report showed headline inflation fell to 2.7%, the lowest since July and below market expectations. Core inflation also weakened to 2.6%, the slowest pace since early 2021. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate rose to...
Trump said he would increase tariffs on Steel and Aluminium to 50% from 25%, effective 4 June. He made the announcement as he visited a US Steel Corp. plant on Friday. Later on, Trump said he would raise Aluminium rates in a Truth Social post, ING's commodity experts Ewa Manthey and Warren Patterson note. Trump says the tariffs are aimed at bolstering domestic production "The US imports significant volumes of Aluminium and Steel from Canada. It imports roughly half of its Aluminium needs from abroad, with Canada the biggest supplier, accounting for 58% of imports, followed by 6% from the...
China on Monday refuted Washington's claims that it had broken the Geneva trade agreement, instead accusing the U.S. for breaching deal terms, signaling talks between the worlds top two economies have taken a turn for the worse. Trade frictions between Washington and Beijing have flared up after a hiatus following a meeting between U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and his Chinese counterpart He Lifeng in Geneva, Switzerland, that had led them to suspend most tariffs for 90 days. The Trump administration has ratcheted up export restrictions on semiconductor design software and...
China's Commerce Ministry on Monday rejected accusations from U.S. President Donald Trump that the country had violated a recent trade agreement signed in Geneva, Switzerland. China claimed it had "taken seriously, strictly implemented, and actively upheld the consensus reached at the talks with U.S. in Geneva," the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement. The statement said Washington had "made bogus charges and unreasonably accused China of violating the consensus, which is seriously contrary to the facts". "China firmly rejects these unreasonable accusations," the commerce ministry...
The Federal Reserve will still be able to cut interest rates this year, with recent data supporting this outlook, Fed Governor Christopher Waller said on Monday. Speaking at a conference in South Korea, Waller said that a rise in inflation from President Donald Trump's trade tariffs was unlikely to be persistent, giving the Fed more confidence to lower rates later this year. If "underlying inflation continues to make progress to our 2% goal," along with tariffs settling at lower rates and employment remaining "solid," "I would be supporting good news rate cuts later this year," Waller...
President Donald Trump said that US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports will double from 25% to 50%, starting Wednesday. At a Pittsburgh rally Friday, he argued the move would strengthen the US steel industry, reduce reliance on China, and protect jobs. He also touted a $14 billion steel investment with Japan's Nippon Steel, though he later admitted he hadn't reviewed the final deal. "There will be no layoffs and no outsourcing whatsoever, and every US steelworker will soon receive a well-deserved $5,000 bonus," Trump told the crowd. Steelworkers raised concerns about how Japan would...
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday accused China of breaking a recent trade agreement, only a few weeks after the two nations announced a temporary truce aimed at de-escalating tensions. In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US." He added: "So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!" Trump said the deal had been struck to prevent further economic deterioration in China after his administration's tariffs took effect. "We went, in effect, COLD TURKEY with China, and it was devastating for them," he said in...
The core PCE price index in the US, which excludes volatile and energy prices and is Federal Reserve's chosen gauge of underlying inflation in the US economy, went up 0.1% from the previous month in April of 2025. The result was in line with market expectations. From the previous year, the index rose by 2.5% to slow from the 2.7% jump from March, the softest increase since March of 2021. Source: Trading Economics
A federal judge needs more time to consider a motion filed by both sides of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to suspend President Donald Trump's far-reaching tariffs, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The decision to lift the unlawful tariffs has been put on hold pending federal circuit review The U.S. appellate circuit has intervened following a ruling by the USCIT that the Trump administration misused the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose global tariffs that exceeded legal limits. The IEEPA was intended to allow...
Gold rises in the early Asian trade. There's a broad commodities uptrend, driven by macro uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and persistent demand for "hard" assets, says Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst...
Oil extended declines after OPEC+ agreed to a bigger-than-expected production increase next month, raising concerns about oversupply just as US tariffs fan fears about the demand outlook.
Brent...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakened against its US counterpart and reversed part of Friday's recovery from the lowest level since July 23 following Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda's remarks....